That Old Time Renewal
by FaerieKnight197
Summary: In the wake of the second Faerie War Ranma is once again called upon. This is a direct sequel to Old Time Magic and Old Time Punishment. Rated T for violence and possible language.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

_**Prologue**_

Well isn't this a fine pickle I'm in. Me, 'man among men' Saotome stuck as a girl at least for the time being. Why's that? Because no one's bothered to explain how I depower. Speaking of which, she gave me a power boost. I hate unearned power boosts. It always feels like cheating. Then there's that stupid whip. I don't need a weapon! Don't want one either! But now I'm stuck with it. Just great. What else can go wrong?

I suppose I should go meet the others. I haven't spoken with the girls since the battle. I suppose being the 'flower knight of love' isn't too horrible. I'm rather use to being a girl these days. In fact I spend time like that by choice. I hope no one else had fallen. The deaths of Rei and Minako had been bad enough. Too many had fallen that day. And that was before my own near-fatal accident. If it hadn't been raining that day, I'd not have survived.

**Till the sun has gone complete around, knowledge is there to impart. Greetings young Dreamweaver.**

_Huh? Who are you?_ I think as the voice echos in my mind.

**Not a who, but a what. I am the magic that flows through you. The source of your queen's power. I am Faerie, and Faerie is me. For one day it is given for your questions to be answered.**

I sat beside the koi pond, my lake I guess. For three hours after my queen's visit I tried convincing Kasumi not to return to it. The final solution wasn't a happy one. This home is now under my protection. And yet I had to make a deal. One which sits poorly with me. In exchange for my protection, Kasumi and her line will guard my pool. Not just guard it, but guide others to me. Others who's dreams have been lost. People who would welcome the escape. It is then up to me to judge each person.

_What am I becoming?_ The thought raced through my mind. No answer was expected. So of course I was surprised when one was offered. **You are the first of your kind. A keeper of lost dreams. But fear not Dreamweaver, for you are neither good nor ill intentioned. As with all faerie kind, you simply are.** _But what of the seelie and unseelie?_ I asked. The answer was one I dreaded. For if the foes we'd fought were not evil, then what was?

**Faerie must do as their nature demands. That some take pleasure in causing harm is but natural. For it is how they always have been. Do you not enjoy granting the lost the life denied them by others?**It was true, I did find satisfaction. It was only after the fact that I felt remorse for taking Kasumi. And when I freed her I felt as if my heart was being torn asunder. Forgive me Soun, but I didn't want to let her go. Not really.

_What is a 'flower knight' exactly?_ I asked the voice. **They are champions of the queen. Guardians of nature's balance and defenders of the innocent. Know this Dreamweaver, only humans may be flower knights. It is only your former status that lets you temporarily take on this task. But only until another comes along.**

**Author Notes:**

As always, if I spelled something wrong or used the wrong word without knowing it please let me know. I hope you enjoy this continuation of Old Time Magic. This is the second major storyline for that world setting. While this is a Sailor Moon crossover, due to events in the previous story not all of the sailor senshi survived. There will be new scouts, and one IS an original character. While this chapter isn't as long as I normally try for, the ending point seems to fit nicely.**  
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	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

_**Chapter One**  
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_From the diaries of Usagi August 12th, 1995_

Dear Diary,

I returned home today for the first time in who knows how long. Haven't seen Mom and Dad in what feels like ages. It's hard to tell how much time has passed in the forest. I could swear the war lasted decades, but I'm told it was only a little over a year and a half. I'm not the same person I use to be. None of us are. At least, those who are left are changed. We lost too many that day, and the Queen wouldn't let me bring them back.

I know I haven't written here in a while. Things got real crazy after training with that girl. Things were real close there at the end, I know. Still not sure how I feel about it all. But I really miss Rei and Mina-chan. I hear Ami is even more withdrawn now then when we first met. And no one's seen Mako-chan since that day. I really miss my friends. Even Luna's gone now. And no one will tell me where she went.

Mom and Dad nearly crushed me when they opened the door. Even my brother was actually less of a pain. Guess I can understand why though. I'm worried about the future however. I didn't quit, but what if what I saw still comes to pass? So many lost, and all my fault. Can I really handle this? I don't know, but I have to try. I can't let that happen. I wont let everything be taken away. Kami, it hurts so much.

_From the diaries of Ami August 13th, 1995_

Dear Diary,

I keep going over that day. Wondering if there was a way to save everyone. In my mind I've come up with dozens of different plans. If only we'd done something differently. If everyone had been there from the start. If we'd ignored the foot soldiers and concentrated on Oberon. If we'd discovered our attacks sooner. Something, anything. I'm suppose to be a genius. So why didn't I realize the army wasn't real? There were so many clues. So why didn't I pick up on them?

I can't help but feel we could have done better. Of course I'd felt the same after Beryl too. But after that we all recovered. Most of us died then, but we were brought back. Somehow I thought we'd always come back. But that's not true anymore, is it? They're gone and not coming back. Why did this have to happen? We're the good guys, aren't we? Good guys always win. Everything always turns out all right... So why not this time?

Huh, the mercury computer is beeping. Guess I better check that.

_**XxXxX**_

In a small apartment within the Juuban ward there lives a heartbroken woman. She'd been a doctor, but that had ended months ago. After her daughter had vanished it was hard to focus on work. Eventually the doctor had went on sabbatical for safety reasons. After all, it wasn't good to lose focus during surgery. And a mistake when making a diagnosis could be equally bad. But maybe now healing could finally begin.

Her daughter had been returned to her the day before. Her precious Ami was back safe and sound. But the teen was changed. There was a sorrow that hadn't been there before. The child's eyes had a haunted look. Her daughter must have seen something horrible, but refused to talk about it. Possibly something to do with her friends. But what? Was it related to that letter?

At the time the letter had seemed like a bad joke. And the girl who had delivered it wasn't one of Ami's friends. Which made the claim that Ami was in another dimension or something fighting a war even harder to believe. But what if it had been true? Could her little girl have been fighting a war? It would explain why she'd vanished. Why her friends had vanished too. But why Ami? That was one question she was afraid to have answered.

The answer she knew would probably break her heart. And yet, not knowing was almost as bad. _I've barely been there for her in the past. But I can't do that again. I can't abandon my baby again._ The heartsick mother crept up the stairs. At her daughter's bedroom door she paused. Indecision struck her just before turning the knob. _She'll tell me when ready. But why didn't she tell me before?_ Finally she opened Ami's door.

The teen was doing something on her oddly shaped laptop. Her mother had no idea where Ami got it, or when. In the past she'd barely even noticed it. _Now that I think about it, didn't Sailor Mercury carry something like it for a while?_ _The senshi disappeared about the same time Ami and her friends did. And then those 'flower knights' started appearing... Could it be? Did they do something to the senshi? _As the realization hit her, Ami's mother developed a large drop of sweat on the back of her head.

_**XxXxX**_

_Harvest Season, 1390 P.M. midnight_

The town was on fire. It had been burning for several days already. Just one side effect of an ongoing war. A war which was not going well. Queen Jane surveyed the damage with obvious disgust. At her side stood a friend she'd not seen in nine hundred years. Not since the end of the third faerie war. The realm's knights had been trying their hardest. And yet it seemed hopeless. The enemy seemed immune to everything her warriors could do. The kingdom wasn't under attack by anything connected with nature. Not this time.

In fact, the creatures laying waste to mankind reminded her of something from long ago. An enemy she'd thought long dead. The first foe her original knights had fought. And the queen remembered how useless she'd felt every time she helped her friends fight back then too. The problem was that there were no senshi. And there hadn't been for centuries. If anyone was to survive, Jane knew they would need help.

"Guardian, are you sure about this?" The queen asked as she brushed her crimson hair out of her eyes.

The guardian said "It must be her, your highness. Although I wish there was another way. Don't worry, everything will be fine." _I hope,_ the guardian mentally added. _I've never done anything like this before._

"But she's just a child. Why can't someone else go?

"Because if anyone else is sent, they are doomed to fail." The guardian replied.

_**XxXxX**_

_August 13th, 1995_

Ranma sighed in relief. It had taken entirely too long, but she'd finally figured out how to negate the transformation. And there was no way she would go out in public dressed like _that_ unless she absolutely had to. There was only one more minor problem to deal with. After that she could go meet the others. And boy was it a doozy. Ranma had no idea where the other flower knights were. That they'd left the forest she knew.

The voice had told her that much while it still was talking. Beyond that it had mostly had information on what exactly a flower knight is. Ranma had spent most of the night conversing with the voice. A conversation which had been most enlightening. She'd learned much about what her duties were. As well as on faerie in general. One thing she'd asked about the most was changelings. Ranma had wanted as much information as she could get on the subject.

Flower knights it seemed normally were recruited from among changelings. But not always. She'd learned that there is always a limit of five knights. And that what knight someone becomes depended upon their own nature. A pragmatic person for example couldn't become the flower knight of dreams. Ranma also learned that she herself was a unique exception. While normally a flower knight's weapon was a part of their soul, Ranma merely was using a shadow of the real rose whip. While it would function as the real one would, it lacked the raw power.

"Maybe the old ghoul can help."

She pocketed a rose shaped pen before leaving. On the pen was an odd symbol which Ranma didn't recognize. Not that she recognized too many symbols that aren't related to martial arts. So she put it out of her mind. After all, it probably wasn't important. _Baka, didn't tell me anything._ _And when'll the other shoe drop? It's too calm today. Pop should have done something. Mister Tendo should have yelled at me. Something, anything._

The walk through Nerima was as calm as breakfast had been. A fact which was really worrying Ranma. No one was threatening her, or trying to glomp her. No shouts of 'prepare to die' either. Not even a random splash. Not that being splashed with water was a concern anymore. These days Ranma didn't change genders unless she wanted to. And right now the teenage fae was perfectly happy to be a girl. The only thing unusual that Ranma noticed was the number of sprites and pixies in the area.

Not that anyone else noticed them.

_**XxXxX**_

_Reincarnation protocol? What's that?_ Ami thought as she checked her computer. It's beeping had interrupted writing in her diary. And when it beeped that usually meant something important needed her attention. Such as a yoma attack. But instead of the expected alert of an enemy, a file was finishing it's download. A file labeled 'reincarnation protocol'. When she tried opening the file a message stating she didn't have clearance appeared. _Great, who does? Usagi maybe? Brr, that's scary._

"Oh, hello Windy. Am I needed for something?"

Only then did she notice her mother in the doorway. She also realized her mother was staring with a vacant expression. The finger pointing directly at Windy Day was a good indication of why the elder woman was 'out to lunch'. And the thud as a body hit the floor spoke volumes for how long it would last. Still, if Windy was here, was there trouble of some sort? Probably. Which made it a good thing the two new flower knights already had combat training. All they needed was to get use to their weapons.

"You know Windy, not everyone is use to seeing flower faeries hovering in the air."

**Author Notes:**

Sorry for the delays on this. As some may be aware, I'm currently working on two other stories besides this one. There's also a fourth story that I'm writing as well. Yes, I may be getting a bit ambitious. The fourth story isn't anywhere near being ready for release yet, but is a sequel to Ranma's Honor. I also found myself scrapping everything for this story multiple times and restarting the 2nd chapter.

Guess I should plot out the overall storyline for this one. I hate doing that


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

_From the diaries of Makoto Kino August 14th, 1995_

There are some days when I absolutely hate this job. At least, I think they're days. It's starting to get rather confusing. Maybe I've been here too long. At least there's company to talk to. At least there would be if Setsuna wasn't busy most of the time writing her book. She wont let me read the manuscript, of course. Says that no one can read it till the thing's complete and published. Something about cause and effect being screwed up if anyone does.

I don't really get it personally. But then again, I'm not the one who kept watching events in the distant future. I try to limit myself to only a few years in advance. Although I can certainly see the appeal of a longer range view. It's hard at times to tell which events will be important, and which can be overlooked. Then there's the fuzzy spots. That's the only way I can think to describe it anyway. It's like looking through a fog. You know something will happen, and that it's majorly important.

What you don't know is just what that something is. Nor do you know what the outcome of any given variable is. If I looked farther ahead, maybe I could backtrack from a point after the fuzzy spots. But I don't. And one is starting now. One that takes up my entire self imposed five year period of distance viewing. I don't know what sparked this nexus. Nor do I have any idea what will happen. And already that is starting to bug me. Maybe looking further ahead is a good idea?

Then again, that strange pink haired girl said it was a bad idea. She had a warning for me too. That if I interfere before called upon, things could get really bad. How bad? Well she said, and I quote, "You told me to tell you 'your friends will die painfully if you try to affect things too early'." Then she asked me to drop her off in Tokyo. Not just anywhere either. She wanted to be placed in the general location of the silver imperium crystal. I have a really bad feeling about this. Maybe Setsuna can give me advise?

Although, I wonder... Her hair style looks exactly like Usagi's. Are they related? Wish I'd thought to ask before sending that girl on her way. Didn't even catch her name.

_**XxXxX**_

He'd gone over to speak with the amazon elder, hoping for a lead on the flower knights. Well, that and food. What he'd found was that gaijin girl and Shampoo struggling to understand each other. If Shampoo's Japanese was bad, the gaijin girl's was even worse. She only spoke English it seemed. A language that Ranma himself could barely speak.

Worse yet, she had some rather bad habits in the Art. Ranma could tell that already. The language barrier would be a problem for sure. While debating how to deal with this new problem the youth noticed something odd. Both Shampoo and the gaijin had wooden wands similar to those carried by the other flower knights. Well, besides Usagi. She had an odd broach, but Ranma had never learned why. While he himself had a ring.

There was also a middle age man in his mid-twenties. His blue hair reminded Ranma of ice. The most remarkable thing about the man was that he appeared unable to walk more then five steps without falling. Not without intense concentration. This mystery man was speaking with Cologne about something. Without any apparent reason the blue haired man staggered towards Ranma.

"You must be the Saotome boy I've heard so much about. Didn't expect to see you though. Thought you died a few months back." The man said with flawless Japanese.

_He speaks my language better then I do, _Ranma thought before answering. "I'm him, who are you and whatcha want?"

"My name's not important. What is important is that I'm here to test you. Me and some others have kept an eye on you for a while now. Then we hear your suppose to be some new champion of nature and justice. From what I hear, you're nothing but a thug. Not the sort I'd trust to wash my car, let alone save the world. A friend of mine however says you risked everything to save this city. Maybe this nation.

"He also says you single kept many of his trainees alive at the cost of your own safety for hours. He's impressed, I'm not. As I hear it, you fought barely skilled opponents and they were overwhelming you. Not surprising for half-trained kids. But not everyone uses soldiers who can barely fight. So I'm gonna fight you. And your gonna show me exactly what you're capable of when you go all out. Hold back, and I've got no fucking problem with crippling you for life."

"No," the pig tailed youth stated in a flat voice.

"No?" He asked Ranma.

"I never take any fight seriously. The one time I did, the other guy didn't walk away and a mountain got leveled. Ain't gonna fight ya all out. This city wont survive if I do. Rather not fight ya at all. No reason to."

The unknown man tried to sit on a stool, and promptly fell off the other side of said stool. As he got back onto the stool he cursed in three different languages None of which Ranma understood. Shampoo and her great grandmother however blanched as they listened. As did the unknown girl. Eventually mister blue hair settled down. He nodded at Ranma and started to smile. While the pig tailed youth was sure the man was angry, he proved otherwise.

"Good answer, what about all the property damage from your usual fights?"

Ranma thought about it for a moment, then spoke. "Not usually my fault. I try ta keep innocents safe and damage to a minimum. When I do cut loose, I try ta do so in an abandoned lot or field. Sides, they usually attack me without warning."

Cologne chuckled at the youth's words. While her great grand daughter didn't realize it yet, the council had decided Ranma was too dangerous to force. Especially with as powerful an ally as the teen proved to have. Then there was Shampoo's new station. A task which effectively removed her from the tribe entirely. Again, a fact which Shampoo had not quite realized yet. And then there was the strange girl from the west.

"Why not settle this with purely hand to hand sparring?" The elderly woman asked.

_**XxXxX**_

Ami looked up from the paper in her hand. There up ahead was the address she'd been given. Not for the first time, she wished faeries were a little less vague. All Windy had said was to come here here today and wait. That, and that whatever would happen was a surprise. And that was all Windy was willing to say. Or able to say, one of the two. It was hard to tell sometimes which was the case. Either way, Ami was left in the dark about what to expect.

The name of the place was a little odd. And she had no idea why it was important to be here. But when your queen and owner sends a message to go to someplace called the cat cafe, you do so. _If anyone told me a few years ago I'd happily call someone my owner, I'd have probably thought them crazy._ She thought as Ami opened the cafe's door. _But here I am, and being owned by Jane still feels like the most natural thing in the world._

Intellectually Ami knew it was in part due to the magic involved. But not entirely. She had spoken with various fae who had once been enslaved by their true names, and not all had looked fondly on those owners. Many had looked for every single loophole in an attempt to escape bondage. While no one bound by their true name could disobey, to enjoy servitude one had to accept it with all their being. Which only happened if the person cared for and wanted to serve their owner.

"Enough stalling,_" _Ami muttered before finally walking into the cafe.

Her jaw dropped upon seeing who was there. A young man Ami had expected to never see again. Not in this life anyway. But there he was, standing in a relaxed yet guarded manner. Sitting on a stool near the youth was a middle aged man Ami didn't recognize. His hair however reminded the girl of her own. Hers was a darker shade, but still there were similarities. The unknown man had a full beard and mustache of the same icy blue hair

When Ranma noticed the newcomer he actually smiled. Not a smirk or a cocky grin, but an actual smile. "Hey there Ami, was hoping ta find ya. Ya related to this jerk?"

He thumbed the blue haired man in question, generating a mild glare. It was at that moment that Shampoo decided this wasn't a dream or ghost. In an instant the amazon teenager was flying through the air towards her pig tailed would-be husband. It was to great surprise, and the unknown man's amusement that Ranma sidestepped the flying glomp. This in turn caused Shampoo to strike the doorway head first, cracking the frame and causing stars to spin around her head.

"Hey Cologne, thought ya'd annul the kisses by now. Whatcha still doin here?"

Ami blinked and muttered "Kisses?"

The gaijins were equally confused by the reference. A fact which the amazon elder didn't miss. Instead of answering right away however she checked her granddaughter. The man casually stood and walked out of the cafe. Or rather he tried to. What actually happened was that he staggered a few steps, then fell flat on his face. This was repeated multiple times as he left. All that were still aware of their surroundings watched, and shrugged almost as one.

"Who was that?" Ami demanded.

Her natural shyness had been literally pounded out a while ago during training. At the time her sensei had said the battle field was no place for being timid. He'd also broken her habit of staying in the background during a conflict. As a result Ami had found herself becoming more bold in everyday interactions too. At least, she did when around people she knew. Which currently consisted of everyone in the cafe at the moment.

The gaijin girl shook her head and said something that Rama didn't understand. Instead he refocused on one of his first students. With a warm smile Ranma took a seat. Other then Shampoo's attempted glomp things were still great for him. Well, maybe not great, but better then it could be. He thought for a moment, then decided to be direct. After all, this gaijin seemed connected to everything somehow. So it wasn't his place to exclude her.

"Something came up Ami, and the queen said something bout new Knights? We all gotta meet. Soon."

_**XxXxX**_

A cemetery seemed an odd place to end up. But that was where she had been deposited. Why, the little girl didn't really know. But up ahead was a blond with rather good taste in hair styles. At least, she thought so. Most mocked the child for how she liked wearing her pony tails. _I recognize this place,_ she thought in shock. _Didn't know it was from Before Merger, wonder who that girl is? She looks familiar._

**Author Notes:**

Probably should have given information on the date format given in the last chapter. P.M. Stood for Post Merger. After an unknown event occurred a new calander was began. This one listed dates after the merger of Earth with the faerie realm as P.M. While dates before that are listed as B.M., or Before Merger. By the year 1390 P.M., or 1390 years after earth first merged with the faerie realm, the use of months such as January through December had long fallen into disuse. Instead people tend to celebrate the seasons.

Some people might wonder why there's no Sailor Scouts in the future. It's simple really. But the full reason wont be revealed yet. Let's just say that Queen Serenity's spell only sent the current scouts ahead by forcing their current incarnation's soul through time completely unchanged. It didn't permanently make being a sailor scout a part of those souls. Unlike what Queen Mab did by accident. Even then, Queen Jane managed to fix that problem so that Usagi and her friends wont always be flower knights in each incarnation.

Yes, I am gonna try prefacing each chapter with a diary entery or First Person Perspective (if the person in question doesn't keep a diary).

Got a question for readers. What should the mystery girl be named? As Narsil guessed, she's this timeline's version of Chibi-Usa. But don't go assuming you know who her parents are :)


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

_**From the diaries of Riana Tendo**_

It's an easy mistake to make, I swear! I mean, how was I suppose to know who it was? It's not like I ever met the guardian of the lake. Papa says he did once, but I think he's just lying. Papa always says my hair looks just like the Guardian, so of course I thought it was her. It looked like my trip would be over almost as soon as it started. I didn't know, how could I have? And now I'm stuck here. I just wanna go home...

_**XxXxX**_

_August 15th, 1995_

Usagi knelt beside the grave of Rei Hino. In her hands was a spherical crystal It was a powerful talisman. One which she had used to defeat a powerful demon, as well as bring all her friends back to life. But that had been before. Now it seemed useless to Usagi. Even so, she knew better then to get rid of it. This crystal was too dangerous in the wrong hands. The question in her mind this morning was 'who's hands are the right ones'.

"Are you Ranma of the Lake?" A child's voice asked from behind.

The voice had come from a child of no more then eight years. The kid was a girl, if the outfit was any indication. A smock like one piece dress made from a rough brown fabric. She had pink hair that almost resembled cotton candy. On the girl's feet were simple brown shoes that might have been hand crafted leather. Poorly stitched leather at that. The little girl stared at Usagi for a few minutes. Then without warning she surged forward.

"I need that crystal," the child said as she reached for it.

The grief stricken teen almost didn't react. When she did it was to withdraw. Without any thought on it, training took over and Usagi's foot shot out. It caught the child in the knee, disrupting her balance. Another unthinking action was to twirl her hands as if holding a staff. Since there was no staff in hand, but a round crystal the effect was not quite as intended. Usagi lost grip on her crystal as the child struck her in the stomach.

A slightly tinny woman's voice filled the air as the silver imperium crystal began to pulse with light. "Unauthorized non-human detected. Unauthorized time key detected. Initiating protocol Serenity One."

The crystal was resting on the child's back. A key shaped pendant had come loose and was also in contact with the crystal. With another pulse both the key and crystal vanished. In their wake was the smell of ozone. The only other evidence of their existence was a small shard of silver metal. While it possibly wasn't destroyed, Usagi felt her link to the crystal sever. And with it's removal, all hope of reviving her friends was also gone.

For months the teen had been considering disobeying her queen. Each day the temptation had been growing. While it might not have been today, or even the next one, soon it was likely Usagi would capitulate. She missed her friends so badly, even her sensei. Damn the consequences, she just wanted to see them one more time. Even her dear Mamoru had gone missing after the battle. No one had seen him in months, either on earth or in the Realm.

To have that shred of hope snatched away was heartbreaking. At the same time having the temptation removed was a minor relief. But who was this kid? And why had she called Usagi 'ranma of the lake'? She knew no such person. Then there was the fact she'd hurt a kid. And done so by instinct no less. Had fighting in a losing war changed her that much? Or was it something else? There were too many questions, and not enough answers.

_Maybe some ice cream will help?_ The thought almost immediately perked Usagi up. After quickly checking her wallet, the youth decided she had enough for a treat. Not to mention an apology to the little girl. _Yes,_ Usagi decided, _that's a perfect plan. And then tonight I can talk to Ami. She might have an idea about what just happened happened._ With her plans decided, the blond teen picked up her erstwhile attacker and started carrying her towards the Crown Arcade.

_**XxXxX**_

The woods were dark and foreboding. It hadn't always been like that. The deep shadows had only come a few days ago. But even now the light of midday couldn't dispel them. In the darkest area sat a lone figure. Gender was impossible to tell in the gloom. The very fact someone was there could only be felt, not seen. More presences appeared in the area, and the original one smirked. It was the first truly visible thing in the forest.

"**Fetch me another, and bigger this time. And you, begin operations tonight. I want a steady supply by the end of the week. You over there, I have another task for you. Place the devices in the designated locations. All of them. And if you get yourself caught, I will revive you just to rip your useless head off again. Do I make myself clear?**" The voice was female, the first real clue as to the apparent leader's gender.

_**XxXxX**_

_Man what a weird dream,_ Ranma thought to himself as he woke up. As the youth checked his chi flows something strange popped up. An energy that hadn't been there the previous day. There was his personal magic, that was as it should be. Actually there was more now. Late the previous evening Kasumi had brought a man to see Ranma. After examining him, Dreamweaver had explained the offer in detail. And the man had accepted it. So his personal magic was back to where it had been before releasing Kasumi.

Then there was the magic granted by the Queen. Although that felt alien and poorly integrated. But now there was a third source of magic. One that felt just as natural as his own personal magic. It was coming from an outside source though, and Ranma could feel the connection. A source which was somewhere in the sky. This one felt similar to the magic gifted by the Queen. Yet different at the same time. One held the raw and untamed power of nature, while the other was almost the purity of life it's self.

This caused him to reflect on the feel of the first two magic sources. While the magic from his Queen was the same in nature as his own, it was more concentrated. More focused as well. It had a definite purpose. His personal magic however was wild and untamed. It was unpredictable, yet limited at the same time. He still didn't know what all he could use it for. His personal magic worked fine as a replacement for chi, but was more then that. And as the battle had shown, even in that usage it was limited.

Some things Ranma could do all day now without any strain. Yet others could only be used once on a given target. And still others he found were no longer usable. The dragon ascension wave was in that final category. He'd tried it in that battle, only for nothing to happen. Yet the youth had the feeling there was something else similar he could do, if only he knew how. His favorite chi attack was also becoming increasingly harder to preform. On top of that, he could only use it on a given target once a day. But it's raw strength seemed to have gone up a little.

"It's almost like it's changing," Ranma mused aloud as he emerged from the koi pond finally.

With a stretch the pig tailed youth entered the house. He noted that breakfast was about to be served. And yet the food while delicious smelling was not entirely appealing. That alone was almost distressing. And yet unlike what the others expected, there was no sounding from the Saotome Stomach Beast. Or rather, only one of them made it's presence known. Already sitting at the table was an overweight panda with a bamboo stalk on it's plate.

The panda held up a sign reading "**This isn't funny**" The sign then flipped over to read "**Why bamboo, again?**"

The Soun waterworks factory was once again in full tilt this morning. As it had been most mornings since not one, but two of his daughters had been lost. It had been bad when it was his first born. But then Akane had also vanished into that pool of water. The only reason the man hadn't filled in the koi pond in grief already was the hope that his daughters might be returned. On this day something was trying to invade his awareness though.

For the last three days the food had gotten inexplicably better. But he didn't remember ordering anything. Nor had his dear friend cooked anything. Soun would never let that happen. After all, he did want to keep breathing. Take this fine meal for instance. The miso smelled exquisite. And where did that bamboo shoot come from? His eldest was the only one who know where to buy them. But she was, was...

"Oh my, I seem to have forgotten the rice."

The waterfall impersonating man slowly lowered his newspaper at hearing the voice. What he saw was at first categorized as a hallucination. And yet, this vision refused to go away. It was also carrying in a pot of water for tea. Hallucinations aren't able to physically interact, which gave rise to a new hope. And yet, she was gone, vanished in the koi pond so many months ago. People don't come back from the dead after all.

"K-kasumi?" Soun hesitently asked.

"Oh, hello Father," she answered in her cheerful yet oblivious way. "When do you get paid? The pantry is almost empty, and I fear there isn't enough money left to restock it."

The question stunned him. It was unlike Kasumi to ask such a question. Not that it was a stupid question. No, it was the fact she asked something that requires observation that shocked her father. To date she'd just cheerfully gone out shopping, not really caring about where the money came from. He actually doubted she knew where the household's money came from.

Although if Soun was honest with himself, he didn't know where the majority of it came from either. His pay from the city council mostly went towards paying his and Genma's bar tabs. For a while now though the mysterious second income source had dried up. At first it wasn't noticeable. But now he could barely afford to go out drinking once every other week. Soun was also unsure where he would get the money for the property tax this year. In the past the money had just been available, but not this time.

There was one other at the table. A person Soun had been trying to ignore for months. The person responsible for his children vanishing. Yet if one was back, that meant... Without warning the Tendo patriarch's head appeared to become that of a giant oni with fiery red horns. This leaned across the table and got in Ranma's face. It was an intimidation tactic, and one which Soun used fairly often normally.

"YOU WILL BRING MY YOUNGEST BACK RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

The panda flinched in panic. A baby set up in it's high chair began to cry. Even Kasumi backed up with wide eyes. Ranma Dreamweaver, formerly Saotome, however wasn't even slightly fazed by it. He reached up and lightly poked the demon head. This caused an audible 'pop' as the chi powered illusion was forcefully dispelled by raw magic. The youth continued to pick at his breakfast with a yawn. Finally he looked up. His expression was not bored though. It was deadly serious and filled with regret.

"Can't. She died saving this city. We done here? I gotta do some important stuff."

The youth didn't bother waiting for an answer. Instead he stood and started for the door. A pause while passing the baby he felt was called for. This was used to tussle the infant's hair playfully. The two adult men still for some reason believed the baby was Nabiki, and he saw no reason to disabuse them of that notion. After that he stepped outside. A quick splash from the koi pond, and a now female Ranma was off.

The panda held aloft a wooden sign which read "**Disrespectful boy should share cure**" Privately Genma wondered where his son manage to store changes of cloths in the koi pond, and why the boy didn't appear wet after emerging from it each morning. And just the previous day he almost swore he heard the sounds of a shower coming from the pond. Of course it was equally baffling to the Saotome elder how his son could vanish into the knee knee deep water without a trace.

_**XxXxX**_

As she walked Ranma was doing some serious thinking. This fact alone would have been enough to alarm the entire ward if it was known. After all, Ranma never thought seriously. Or at least that's what everyone assumed. But this morning he was doing just that._ I've spent almost my entire life doing nothing but training, so I should be the best. But that green skinned man was pulling off moves I'd never even heard of. Not ta mention combining them with firearms._

_And that gaijin girl, she claims ta still be in training. But from what I saw, she might be almost my equal. If I'm the best, how is that possible? Pops has been training me nonstop for over ten years, an still spars with me daily. Shouldn't that make me better then anyone? Come to think a it, what has he trained me in? How to fall properly, by throwin me outa trees an offa cliffs. What else? Speed an endurance... by tyin me with stake an havin me chased by wolves while carryin his lard ass._

_Come ta think o it, he didn't teach me anythin. It was the dojos he left me at for a few days atta time. _This realization was quickly followed by another. _I don't know my dan ranking!_ This was then followed rapidly by yet another realization. _Do I know anyone with actual training? Ukyo trained slashing water, Akane just jobs an breaks bricks, Shampoo has no defense... I don't think I do. I can kinda teach what I know, but what do I really know?_

By the time she reached the cat cafe Ranma wasn't anywhere near as confidant as she normally was. Oh, she was still strutting. But it was now an act. Over the months of healing the youth had gotten time to seriously think about the various challenges that had cropped up. And what that mental analysis came up with wasn't pretty. Ranma had been forced to examine her own behavior, as well as skill. The final tally was one that disturbed her. At the end of the day, Ranma Dreamweaver was not as honorable as she liked to think.

Upon entering the cafe she immediately bowed towards the ancient woman at the counter. "Elder, I wanna request you test my skills in the basics."

The request elicited a cackle which Ranma found distasteful. Not quite offensive, but still not one of her favorite sounds. _Son-in-law showing me respect? Something must be up. Wonder why he suddenly wants to be tested in the basics?_ Still unsure of his intentions, the amazonian elder lead him into the basement. The cafe was closed today anyhow. Once below ground Kuh Lon began an exhaustive series of tests.

The end result had the elder baffled. The council of elders had decided Ranma had to be made part of the tribe due to being the most skilled warrior they had ever seen. And yet, this was proving to be not the case. In terms of actual skill, she found Ranma sorely wanting. Ingenuity was there in plenty. Speed, strength, and agility also were there in spades. And yet, in the skill department this teen was barely a beginner. Almost all her kata were unmastered and still geared towards a little child. While the teen 'knew' many styles, none were at any real skill. If she were to hazard a guess, this child had not earned a dan ranking in any of the many styles studied.

What was most interesting to her though was not his lack of mastering the basics. Rather it was that Ranma had taken the incomplete training in dozens of styles and formed an effective overall style. It wasn't the 'Anything Goes' style of Happosai. Nor was it the 'Anything Goes' style used by the boy's father. It was one all Ranma's own. And Elder Kuh Lon could tell it had the potential to be devastating if he ever actually mastered the basics.

It was something she'd suspected for a while. She'd began to suspect it starting with the 'full body cat tongue' events. The boy had an almost intuitive grasp of the mechanics for the chestnuts training method. And yet the reason and intention of the training had not been understood. Just the raw mechanics were figured out. Even that much however was rather impressive. Another discovery from that event had been Ranma's training habits.

_Son-in-law doesn't rest when training. I wonder if he even knows why you should rest?_ _It's ironic, great granddaughter has mastered the basics and understands the reasons for techniques, yet son-in-law is the better fighter without understanding or mastery simply due to having a drive to improve. But how do I tell him? Son-in-law is too proud to acknowledge any weakness._ She tapped the staff on the floor in thought as Ranma finished the last test.

"Why do you train so hard?" Kuh Lon asked finally.

"Ta be the best," she answered without thinking.

It was an answer given by long habit. It had no real meaning anymore to the youth. Nor did it truly convey why she trained. If honest with herself, Ranma wasn't aware of why she trained so hard. It was just something she'd always done. But then again, it was rare that she was honest with herself. It had taken months of forced leisure to realize how dishonorable her fighting methods were. And just as long to admit that her father may not have actually taught her much.

"And are you?" the ancient woman asked.

Ranma's answer was again unthinking. "Of course! Ranma Saotome never loses! Er... Ranma Dreamweaver I guess."

"I had heard you changed your name upon returning. Then why use your old one?"

Ranma sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "It's sorta a reflex."

Loud crashing sounds came from above, and in an instant Ranma was moving. At the top of the stairs she came to a halt. Shampoo was fighting a, something. It looked humanoid, although appeared to be made of frosting. It was vaguely female too. The creature felt very very wrong to her senses. As if it was not part of nature. With no thought to her own safety, the pig tailed fae leaped into the air, foot extended. When contact was made it felt like she'd struck granite instead of cake frosting.

It did nothing. No, worse then that was the fact the creature didn't even notice the impact. Upon landing she launched a flurry of punches and kicks. Again the female creature didn't even seem to notice. A throw across the room finally got it's attention. And that proved to be a really bad thing. One arm extended, and a wide spray of frosting shot towards Ranma. She jumped in an attempt to avoid it, but the stream didn't stop. As the pig taled youth landed in the sugary paste she found herself propelled back towards a wall.

What was worse, the frosting was trying to drain her life energy. Fortunately her body no longer contained any chi. Unfortunately what she did have was still slowly being dampened. Not drained, but still suppressed. Her eyes were growing heavier and heavier the longer the draining attempt continued. Vaguely she remembered the pen or whatever. Her hand could still reach it, maybe. Yes, there it was. Words flowed into her mind of their own accord. Words which demanded to be let loose.

"Rose Nature ASCENTION"

A burst of raw magic surrounded her. It did manage to free Ranma from the frosting that had entrapped her, but beyond that she didn't know anything. When the blinding light faded the teen was garbed in a green and red fuku. The neckline was plunging, yet still retained her modisty. The knee high boots were forest green, as were the elbow length gloves. And in her hand was a whip which appeared to be made out of a really long rose.

"Raman shops are for enjoying good food, not terrorizing teenagers. For violating the balance of nature in the name of the Queen I will punish you!" Knight Rose said as she posed prettily.

Kuh Lon had just reached the ground floor as the impromptu speech was given. And upon hearing it all she could do was groan. The whip lashed out several times, but the impacts had no discernible effect. The female monster backhanded Knight Rose, causing her to fly back into a wall. As she struck Knight Rose slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Her actions had at least given Shampoo enough time to try out the new powers granted to her not too long ago. Another light show had filled the cafe's dining area, and in it's wake stood the newest Knight Clover. Her blue hair flowed freely, and the chain in her hands gleamed in the light. Even so, she knew that if Ranma had been taken out that easily, she might be in trouble.

**Author Notes:**

There are 3 types of energy that will be dealt with in this story. They are Divine Magic, Nature Magic, and Chi. Each has it's strengths and weaknesses. None are inherently superior to the others. They just are. The first is divine magic, this is what's used by the sailor senshi. This is magic channeled from an outside divine source. That source in the Senshi's case is the planetary spirits. This type of magic is ideal for fighting demons, especially ones which drain life force.

Nature magic on the other hand comes not from a deity but from nature it's self. Faerie magic is simi-sentient, as is evidenced by events in That Old Time Magic. It has it's limits, such as some uses being incapable of affecting any given being the same way twice in one day from the same caster. Since Ranma is now a type of fae, if he were to use his energy blast on Ryoga on Tuesday, it would be useless against Ryoga for the rest of that day. He could fire more at Ryoga, but they wouldn't do anything upon impact. it is ideal for dealing with mortals or other things using nature magic.

Chi is simply put the life force of the user. A chi master can tap into the chi of an area to use that or replenish their personal chi. it should be noted that Ranma doesn't actually know any chi masters, nor is he one. While it can be effective against a wide range of things, it too has it's weaknesses. Magic and chi simply don't interact. If Ryoga tried using his chi blast to hit someone using any type of magic, it would bypass any magic barrier in place. Similarly, magic bypasses chi barriers. This means that since Ranma is now using magic instead of chi, he can't negate Ryoga's chi blast with his own attack.

While any type of magic protects against life force drain, nature magic is still affected by it. This is because nature magic is sort of an extension of life it's self. So while a yoma can't steal the life energy of a fae such as Ranma, it can (and does) suppress that life energy. The reason a Flower Knight is completely protected is because their nature magic is highly ordered, not chaotic.

There is also an odd intereaction between divine, demonic, and nature magic. Namely the fact that each bypasses the other's defenses. A divine magic user ignores the defenses of a demon when the attack hits. A demon ignores the defenses of a nature magic user if the attack hits. And a nature magic user ignores the divine magic user's defenses if they connect. Thus when a flower knight fights yoma or other demonic monsters their armor (fuku) is just pretty cloth for all the protection it provides.


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

_**From the diaries of Kasumi Tendo**_

The house seems so quiet these days. It's strange to me. On the one hand I clearly remember a happy life with my mother raising me. And yet I also remember her dying when I was young. It is hard to tell which is real at times, the happy life I led or this one I find myself forced into. If I could I would eagerly go back to my family and children. But that is denied me by one who clearly cares. I have to wonder why he cares so much. Oh my, I almost forgot. Daddy got upset with 'Ranma' today. It was something about Akane, but I didn't quite catch what he said. It seems she passed on too. At least it was while protecting people.

It's hard to think of this boy as Ranma. He is nothing like the young man I know. And yet, there are similarities. This one insists on being called 'Ranma of the Lake' or 'Ranma Dreamweaver', though I don't entirely understand why. While he wont let me return to my husband, this 'Ranma' has vowed to watch over me and mine for generations to come. All that he asks in return is that I and my descendents guard the pond and guide any seekers to him.

I know not what exactly he means by that last part. And what did he mean by 'the Tendo family will remain under my protection so long as the pact is kept'?

_**XxXxX**_

_August 15th, 1995_

The creature was fast, too fast. It had backhanded her so quickly that Knight Rose didn't even see the blow coming. She hit the wall hard then slowly slid to the ground. After shaking her head to clear it the new magical girl stood up again. Without any warning she jumped once more at the frosting like creature. She unleashed a brutal combination of punches and kicks, all of which seemed to do nothing. Shampoo was wearing a similar outfit, and swinging a chain at the creature.

Neither noticed when a third teen entered the room. The newcomer had light blond hair that was cut really short. An obvious female, she carried herself with the grace of a panther. The newcomer took in the situation, and scowled. Noticing a thorny whip laying on the ground nearby, she picked it up. _Who's the girl?_ She thought upon spotting the red and green garbed youth. _She looks like that Jane woman did in the battle. Huh, where'd that whip go? It could be useful._

She noticed the battle was still not going in the favor of the two flower knights. The blue haired one had just been put through a table, while the one with red hair was being tossed through the ceiling. The newcomer weaved through the debris and threw a full strength punch at the creature. It was a punch that could punch a hole through solid steel. And yet she saw no visible indication it had done anything. When the creature launched a stream of frosting like goo at her, the teen dived behind the counter.

"Think, think, the exoskeleton acts as a sort of armor. It looks like it's frosting. Frosting is a semi-solid liquid, that's it!

She reached into a belt pouch and pulled out a capsule. After throwing it, the teen once more ducked behind the counter. Five seconds later the sounds of smashing had stopped. Peaking over the top showed that the creature had been frozen in place. Ice crystals had formed in spots. _Perfect,_ she thought. A flying kick then shattered the creature into dozens of pieces. With a sigh she checked on the two girls. _I am soo not trained for this._

The red head had by this time had fallen to the ground. The pained groan indicated at least some consciousness, unlike the other one. The ancient midget hurried to the other one and checked for a pulse. But that didn't impact what the young girl was doing too much. Seeing the green and red fuku on the red head turning into leaves and falling off was a surprise. Equally surprising was the pail pink glow surrounding the knocked out martial artist. In the subdued chaos no one noticed the ice chunks flowing together then vanishing.

_**XxXxX**_

A rather odd looking demon had shown up, and for once nothing he could do was able to stop it. Not even after using that magical power-up. Just the thought of doing _that_ sent a shiver down Ranma's spine. He hated unearned power-ups. Or at least, it would have if thoughts were currently capable of flitting through his mental process. Instead all that got through was a set of really loud bongo drums being played by oompa loompas while the lollipop guild played cymbals in his brain.

The last thing he could clearly remember was being a girl and having her head slammed into the cat cafe's ceiling, Hard. That power-up was suppose to include 'armor', not that it did much good. He'd felt the full force of every single impact. In fact, nothing had lessened how much each blow had hurt. He could tell at least one rib was cracked just from how hard breathing had become, and how much doing so hurt.

The sound of the ocean filled his ears. Slowly he opened eyes that wanted to stay shut. There was an ocean all right, but no land. In fact Ranma found himself laying on the surface of the water. _Wait a minute,_ he thought. _Wasn't I a girl while fighting that thing? _With nothing better to do, the teen decided to explore. Although there was nothing visible, that didn't mean there was nothing there. The first step was to extend his senses.

"Okay, water's toxic, better not drink it. Lotsa magic, not like mine. Too ordered fer my tastes. Brighter over there, almost shaped like a... Huh, a castle? Out here? Why couldn't I see it before? May as well check it."

_**XxXxX**_

The arcade was fast approaching. But that wasn't the problem. No, the problem was the kid in her arms was waking up. And not only that, but she was fighting to get free. Usagi still didn't know who the kid was, or why she'd tried stealing the crystal. With a 'oof' the teen got elbowed in the gut. Then a sloppy kick to the shin occurred. If her grandfather was alive, the child was sure he'd be rolling in his grave knowing how poor her skills were. Even her mother would be ashamed if she still lived.

There were mutterings of something called 'eye scream' or some such, although the youth didn't know what it was. _Probably some sort of torture,_ she thought. Unfamiliar beeps and whistles could be heard once the door was opened. The struggling child looked around in a panic, yet didn't see anything obviously dangerous. Something though smelled rather delicious. Or rather, several somethings. And just what was her captor babbling about?

"?"

She watched as the blond teen handed some oddly dressed boy several pieces of paper. Before anyone knew what was going on the child found herself plopped in a unnatural feeling bench and across from that girl. A tray of something was brought over. While two of the objects on the tray smelled like fire seared meat, they looked nothing like the child recognized.

And then there were the two glass bowls filled with more chocolate then the child had ever heard of being in one place at the same time. Some of it was fudge bars, those at least she recognized even if they were far too big to be actual fudge. Next was the chocolate looking liquid drizzled all over the confection. There were these square cake like things that also smelled of fudge. Next up was a plethora of small tear shaped fudge. And finally was three large mounds of a cold and creamy looking brown substance.

_Not even village elders have that much! Each one holds more then the village sees during the harvest festival. And she's inhaling it all? How rich is she? _One of the two obscene deserts was pushed towards the girl. With clear reverence the child used a spoon to take a small bite. As the brown cream like substance melted in her mouth tears started to form. While she still didn't know what it was, this treat was fit for the Queen herself.

Usagi smiled as she watched the little kid savor every bite of the decedent sundae. From the way the kid acted, this was almost a religious experience. And for the young champion her smile was the first truly genuine one in a while. It hadn't been there since her friends and instructor had passed on. And while there was nothing definite, Usagi could almost swear this child reminded her of someone. The pink hair was odd, but no odder then blue or yellow hair was.

"Is this the first time you ate ice cream?" The teen asked.

The pink haired child paused in her near worship and blinked. "_This_ is eye scream?"

"No," Usagi corrected, "It is _ice_ cream. My name's Usagi, what's yours?"

The little girl paused in her reverent dining once again, this time with a spoonful of brownie half way to her mouth. "Riana. So you're not Ranma of the Lake?"

The mention of that name brought a shadow to Usagi's patented cheer. She'd known a Ranma, and from what had been described to her Ranma had died in battle. Even the chocolatey bliss before her couldn't dull that ache. Trying not to think about it any more, she shoveled the rest of the sundae down. One of the burgers quickly followed the confection to it's emasticated(1) doom. Her cell phone ringing brought a brief end to the carnage.

_**XxXxX**_

The castle was huge. It's interior even more so then the exterior for some unknown reason. Many halls were decorated with statues of women in various states of dress. But the statues weren't what held Ranma's attention the most. It was rather the material the castle was made from. It appeared to be crafted of sea shells. The walls were a sea green color. The floor on the other hand were a pearl-like shade of off-white. The longer he explored this palace, the more it felt like his steps were guided.

This thought troubled him for an unknown reason. The reason for the worry was hard to pin down, so he didn't try. Instead Ranma thought about his life so far. All his life pops had drilled into him various principles of being 'manly'. The reason had been unknown until rather recently. And what was deemed 'manly' at times made little sense. For example it was 'unmanly' and 'girly' to show any emotions, yet 'manly' to protect the weak. There were times when he wondered why you would protect others if it was unmanly to care.

When such thoughts came, the pig tailed fae wondered what he would have been like if it wasn't for the curse. Would he have become bitter? Possibly, after all it had been becoming a girl at times that originally provided friendship. When honest with himself, Ranma had to admit that without the curse he'd never have been able to relate to any girls. It had been an eye opener. Suddenly many teachings the youth had taken on faith were proven false.

Chief among those beliefs had been that all girls were weak mentally and physically. That they were incapable of knowing how to fight also went without saying. It was bull pucky, but how was Ranma to have known that at the time? It was the curse which had finally taught him the error of such a belief. And with one set of 'facts' destroyed in the light of truth, others in time followed. He'd long known his father to be an idiot, but learning how dishonorable Genma was had also been an eye opener.

As he walked the teen realized something else. Many of the statues he passed were no longer showing things of an adult nature. Instead they seemed to be morphing into scenes of battle. What could only be guardsmen were depicted fighting, and dying against inhuman looking monsters. Just outside an ornate door twice his height was a final statue. This one showed a long haired teenage girl wearing an indecently short skirt and with a chain made of hearts at her feet.

Further study of the statue revealed what appeared to be ruby 'blood stains'. Touching one however caused his hand to come away wet with a red liquid on the tips of the fingers. A quick taste revealed the distinctive tang of blood. With eyes wide he looked closer at the statue. It was still made of stone, and yet it bled. Privately he wondered what it could mean, and what happened here. He could see an expression of fear and pain etched into the stone.

With no answers forthcoming from the marble, he opened the massive door. It lead to a hall far larger then he'd ever expected. In the distance was a throne, but beyond that it was too far to make out details. The hall was otherwise completely empty. The sound of slipper clad feet impacting the floor echoed hauntingly. Crossing the expanse seemed to take forever. Slowly details of the throne began to become clear. Chief among them was that someone was lounging length wise across the regal seat. A female someone in a shimmering semi-transparent gown at that.

"So, have you thought about my offer?" The lounging woman asked.

_**XxXxX**_

Ami sighed as she hung up the phone. It had taken a while, but Usagi had finally answered. Convincing the blond ditz to head back into Nerima the next day had been hard. But the need was great. After all, there was a new Knight to meet there. One that she was sure the other girl would be happy to see. _I should try getting her to look up this 'reincarnation protocol' too._

_**XxXxX**_

As night fell a eerie calm descended upon the city. To the residents of the Nerima ward this was ominous and a sign of coming trouble. To those in other wards it was a normal occurrence. But in one wooded glade the shadows darkened at an unnatural pace. An imposing figure dominated the glade. Before her was arrayed her monstrous soldiers. _I should be getting those generals soon, good. _The figure was female. Her smile was enough to chill the blood of even her subjects.

"**Report,**"she ordered one of the creatures.

"It is as you said Mistress, the senshi are no more. I did encounter some other magic girls, but they were no real threat. Their leader spouted something about 'violating the balance of nature' but lacks the ability to hurt one of us. Unlike that 'Sailor Moon' from before."

"**And the harvesting station I sent you to establish?**"

The frosting like female creature shuddered. "I was unable to secure one of the locations. A human with unknown weapons was able to stop me at the planned 'nerima' site."

**Author Notes:**

1. It means 'to chew' when spelled emasticate, or 'chewed' as a past tense, I think. And yes, I quadruple checked the spelling. Could still be wrong though so if I am feel free to correct me. Spellcheck keeps wanting me to change it to emasculated for some reason, which has a vastly different meaning then what I want.


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

Every time I think I understand what's going on, something happens to prove me wrong. Take the 'reincarnation protocol' for example. At one point I thought it was just that, a senshi would be reborn somehow and aged fast enough to take up the battle without a delay. When we learned what it actually was, I was stunned. What would have happened if Queen Serenity hadn't cast that final spell? Would we have been reborn as normal, as normal kids? Or would we have been sailor senshi like we are now? And would there have been senshi otherwise? It boggles the mind to think that the queen may have left the earth defenseless by accident.

_August 20th, 1995_

It had been years since the Tendo dojo had housed this many people. While it was true that the household was down by one person, there still was barely enough space for everyone. The resident infant didn't exactly care about that though. She was more concerned about sleeping and having her hunger sated. But for the others the crowding was getting on nerves. Especially that of the only two current males in the household. Genma had tried several times to change his 'dishonorable' son back into a boy, always ending in merely a wet girl still laying on Akane's old bed.

The two men didn't exactly know what was going on. Five days ago Ranma had left after saying he, then a she, had something important to do. That evening he'd been brought back by four teenage girls, one young child with pink hair, and one amazon elder. Of them, only the elder had left. That still had left four teenage girls cluttering the house. And try as he might, Soun was unable to convince them to leave. Then again one was the bane of structural integrity and slaughterer of civilized language, Shampoo the Chinese amazon.

The other three he didn't recognize. One was blond with the oddest hairstyle seen in Nerima. Another looked a bit like his youngest daughter, yet acted nothing like her. Then there was the American. What they had to do with Ranma or Shampoo was anybody's guess. Not that Soun cared. His friend cared even less, and had actually tried throwing them out of the home. That had proved to be a mistake. Individually the three unknown girls could hold their own against Genma. But they fought together. While their teamwork wasn't the best, it had been enough.

On the fifth day something new finally happened. A teenage girl with flaming red hair stepped out of nowhere in the back yard. The teen was wearing a forest green dress which appeared to be made of leaves. On her brow rested a tiara made of silver. The girl moved like a trained fighter. And yet her eyes sparkled with innocence and amusement. And the way she giggled at some private joke sent shivers down the middle aged man's spine. Deep down he knew this was a bad sign.

His long time friend didn't seem to notice the danger signals. He charged forward shouting something nearly incoherent about weak girls and dresses. Soun almost felt sorry for the girl. Almost, but not quite. With the legendary logic residents of Nerima were known for, he'd come to conclude this mystery girl was after the boy's hand in marriage too. Just as Genma had made the assumption the red head was his 'dishonorable' son.

_Is the boy really dishonorable?_ Soun wondered not for the first time. It was a hard thought to contemplate. What made it so hard was that if Ranma was honorable, what did that say about his friend? Or himself for that matter. He was honorable, as was Genma. And yet watching his friend continue trying to attack a complete stranger made Soun question what honor actually was. Vines erupted from the ground and engulfed his long time friend in a strangle hold.

With the assault ended, Soun decided to find out who she was. As well as what Genma had sold the boy for this time. He strode forward, unsure yet if his demon head technique would be needed. Likely that would be the case, but old habits died hard. And saving a few surprises was one that he didn't wish to kill. The unknown girl was now striding into the dining room through the open screen. Several tears in her gown were now there, thanks to one Genma Saotome.

"And who might you be?" The Tendo patriarch asked with a slight edge to his voice.

The girl looked at him and giggled at some private joke. "Jane, where is Ranma?"

His head seemed to expand into a horned oni's head. It loomed over the teen as he demanded "**What do you want with him**?"

What should have been an intimidating gesture fell flat. Instead of trembling in fear the teenage girl raised an eyebrow and laughed. She reached out and started to remold Soun's demon head. Abruptly she stopped and blinked. The teen shook her head before chuckling softly. When her mirth had been gotten under control Soun found himself facing a green clad teen with a deadly serious expression. When she spoke it was in an imperial tone.

"My business is my own mule-san. Now step aside before you stop amusing me."

_Mule-san?_ He thought in confusion. The demon head technique faded as fountains of tears erupted from his eyes. "Waaah! Now the schools will never be joined!"

"No, they wont. Not in this generation and probably not in any." The teenage girl said. "I have spoken with my subject about this in the past. The one he loved, the one he might have married had she not been abusive was your youngest. Her own actions ensured your dream could never become reality Mule-San. He was giving her a final chance to regain his trust. Now move, I have a subject to tend to."

_**XxXxX**_

He sighed and looked at the throne once again. This was an impossible choice. One which no one on earth was truly qualified to answer. For five days he'd been debating it. The choice it's self was an impossibility. On the other hand, impossible was pretty normal in his life. He'd fought the descendent of a dragon, and a self proclaimed kami. He'd faced a nine headed dragon like creature, and trained honest to gods magical girls how to fight.

And now another self proclaimed kami was asking him to become her avatar. Or rather, asking 'her' to become an avatar. There were many reasons to say no. And equally as many reasons to say yes. And while Ranma Saotome never gets scared, this made her deeply afraid. It scared her more then cats did. A fact which alone said something about the situation. Hesitantly he approached the woman on the throne yet again. Just as he'd done each day for the last five days.

"I still don't understand somethin. You're the 'goddess of love'. Fine, I'll accept it for now. And ya want a new avatar. So why me?"

The woman smiled warmly and said "I could say it was destiny, but I would be lying. In times past I had a pact with the royal family of my planet. Recently the pact has been broken. There are no longer any survivors in the house of Venus. My people are gone, but their duty remains."

Ranma scowled at this. "Still don't answer, why me?"

The goddess sighed. "Because you are a good person. With all you've gone through, you could have turned on humanity. Your brash arrogance can be a liability at times. You are rude and actively strive to anger everyone around you frequently. You could have become bitter and cruel. But instead you are fiercely loyal to those you care about. With all your faults, you are still a good person."

"But I'm not human now," He tried to counter.

"It doesn't bother me. In fact, my sister's first avatar was also of faerie."

He thought about that for a long time. Finally the one question that really bothered Ranma was asked. "Will I be able to be a guy still?"

Venus blinked at the question. "Is it really that important to you?"

Was it? From the time he first got cursed removing it had been a major focus. After Saffron he'd come to realize there might not be a cure. Then a teenage girl had offered him something precious. Not a cure, no she'd offered him control. With that control Ranma had been able to chose his gender. And if desired, he could have remained a guy forever. And yet he'd chosen to be a girl fairly regularly. He'd never stopped to think about why that was. Things just got kind of hectic after a while.

Reflecting on it, his female form felt just as natural as his male form. Some days he'd spend the day as male or female depending on whim. But overall Ranma found himself spending equal amounts of time in both forms. So was it important to retain ability to be male? Could he spend the rest of his life just as a girl? Did he desire being male, or just the option of being male? It was impossible to say for certain either way. All Ranma knew was that having the choice was central to his being.

"Yes, it is. Can't splain it, but I need the choice."

This was an important decision, and he knew it. This was something that would affect him till the end of his days. Not only him, but from what the woman had just said it would affect any children too. It was as important a choice as when he'd agreed to teach five girls martial arts in the past, with as far reaching of consequences. It was being in a realm saturated with magic that had fully awakened his new nature. An event that never would have occurred if he hadn't agreed to train the 'flower knights'.

That unknowing choice alone had ensured that he would live for centuries, at least. Assuming nothing managed to kill him that is. It had gotten the person he loved cursed, although that had been her own fault. And now it had gotten her killed. Could he do this? Could he sacrifice so much willingly for the sake of a self proclaimed deity? The answer troubled the teenage fae. Yes, he could. And more, he probably would. No, there was no 'probably' about it. He was just stalling now. The decision had already been made.

"Fine, I'll do it. I hate being marn, merf, man-imp-lated an this feels like it. Least ya been strait with me. Still hate unearned power-ups though."

The goddess chuckled. "The word is 'manipulated', and why do you feel this is 'unearned'?"

The pig tailed youth sighed. "Everything I know, everything I do I earned. I trained all my life. I worked hard ta be the best. After becoming what I am now I trained for months ta learn my new limits an remaster my abilities. But this is cheating. Doesn't take study or work. Everything is just given. It's like the super soba or battle doji all over again."

Mentioning the two events called to mind why they had been so bad. It also called to mind others who had great power without earning it. The uncaring arrogance that tended to accompany free power-ups. It called to mind the pain and hardship Ranma himself had gone through because of 'easy' power methods. One of which still plagued him. To be deathly afraid of felines. To have no control when the fear got too bad. To not know what had happened, or who he'd hurt.

"No good ever comes from unearned power-ups." He said finally.

The goddess considered his words. After all, it wasn't wise to annoy one who would hopefully be her champion. And the more she considered it, the more sense he made. It could be said the Great Fall had been caused by unthinking cruelty of those in power. And the ones in power had been the avatars of the gods. What had started as a group of noble protectors had in time become a group of rulers. And those rulers over the generations had lost sight of who they protected. Instead of being warriors for love and peace, they had become obsessed with appearance and power. Could it have been prevented by making their avatars earn their abilities?

"What would you suggest?" She asked.

_**XxXxX**_

Eyes slowly fluttered open The youth on the bed tried to sit up, only to stop and clutch her side. _That hurts,_ was all that could be thought. As her eyes came back into focus a pink and red blur struck Ranma in the stomach. _Oooowww,_ thought the youth as the blur resolved into a child of young age with pink hair. The red proved to be one of her chinese shirts. On this child it was long enough to serve as a dress though. Ranma herself tended to tuck it in due to it's length. The child was female, she thought. A quick scan of auras proved that guess accurate. Her ribs continued protesting the rough treatment though.

"Mommy! You're finally awake mommy! Whatcha dooing here mommy?"

Ranma's eyes twitched more and more with each time being called 'mommy'. It had a little to do with the continued squeezing. But more it was that this kid was implying she was the mother. Vision was just starting to swim when someone pealed the hyper child off. Able to breath once again, the pig tailed fae gasped for air. Her eye was still twitching though, and for good reason. There was a pink haired girl with Usagi's rather ridiculous hairstyle still babbling about 'mommy'.

"I ain't yer mom, squirt." Ranma finally said with more venom then intended.

She took in the room's other occupants. Usagi and Ami he was glad to see. They still had to talk. Shampoo he was less happy about, but she too needed to be here. He still wasn't sure who the fourth girl was though. She looked American. And then Pink as she was mentally referring to the child. At no point did she mention a name, so she didn't know what to call her. With a groan Ranma painfully reset the broken ribs once more. She then channeled a bit of raw magic to mend them enough not to shift again.

"Don't hurt Sensei, Riana" Usagi scolded.

The little girl snorted and yelled "You ain't my daddy! Jus look kinda like him..."

The last part had been little more then a whisper. But Ranma had heard it. Her eye twitch got worse at the implication. Now time travel wasn't exactly a new experience for the Tendo residence. And it was entirely possible that the cursed pools of sorrow could settle down at some point. And the little kid did sort of remind her of herself. Hence the severe eye twitch. The idea that she'd ever give birth was not pleasant, but it was theoretically possible.

"Actually squirt, she could be. From the future, right? An the name's Ranma, not 'mommy'."

A resounding echo of "huh?" Could be heard from nearly everyone present.

Then in a rare bit of sounding intelligent the pig tailed youth spoke. "The brat called me 'mommy', an I know I ain't had any kids in either form. So either she's crazy, or it ain't happened yet. Don't know when it'll happen, don't wanna know either." She paused and shuddered. "An while the pools of sorrow are one big lake now, could settle sometime. Which point blondy here could get cursed like I was. She could be the dad." Another shudder. "Not that I'd make a baby with her. Donno know how to either."

Her pronouncement appeared to create extreme gravitational distortions in a localized area. Four teenagers fell face first into the floor for no apparent reason. Riana on the other hand was confused. Why did it matter where babies came from? _Everyone knows mommies find them in cabbage patches. Duh!_ _Sarah says it's a stork, but daddy told me the truth._ The little child nodded sagely at her inner musings, content to know where babies really came from. Talk of curses however was also confusing. When she got home she'd definitely have to ask daddy about that.

It was Ami Mizuno who was first to pick them self up while she rubbed a now sore forehead "How did you survive? I saw you buried under rock."

Ranma sighed. "It was raining."

"And?" Ami pressed.

"That's it, it was raining."

_Ow,_ Mizuno thought as she once more fell face first into the floor. From the string of matching thuds she wasn't the only one either. Sarah hadn't even started to get up, and still managed to impact hard enough to knock herself out. The neo-fae found herself laughing at everyone antics. While it wasn't nice to laugh at others pain, seeing them fall face first for no apparent reason was hilarious. _Suppose I should actually answer._

"While the koi pond in the yard is my 'lake', any pool of water can be a doorway for me. It just took several months to recover from nearly being crushed inta paste. Got a question."

This time it was Shampoo who tried to answer. "What ar-Ranma want?"

Ranma held up a golden pen like wand engraved with the symbol for Venus. "How do I use this?"

A series of thuds signaled that gravity had once again become locally unstable. In the wake of the third such event the only ones left in the room still conscious were Ranma and Riana, and the baby called Nabiki. It was into this scene that Queen Jane of Elphame walked. She looked around and noticed almost everyone laying on the ground, apparently asleep. On the bed laid a female Ranma. Still standing was a child who caused Jane to raise an eyebrow curiously.

"Am I interrupting something? I would have been here sooner but Mule-San delayed me."

_**XxXxX**_

It sat on the shelf unnoticed. If it occasionally let loose a wave of dark energy no one seemed to care. The object was too small to be remarked upon. And the amount of power being emitted was too low for detection. If it was the only source of energy that might have been different. But there were hundreds scattered around the city. The timing for each pulse had been carefully calculated. Fast enough so that at any given moment twelve of the small devices would be releasing one. Yet spaced enough apart so that the pulses didn't overlap.

_Soon, very soon,_ the miniature Buddha statue thought eagerly.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

"_I never really understood why she wanted me to do those things. That it helped me was enough to know at the time. And yet now that I do see the reason, I can't help but wonder if it had been a mistake. But such questions are always there when the end finally comes."_

_-Queen of Ice_

_August 21th, 1995_

The day wasn't even half done and already she had a massive headache. That in part was due to having been slammed through a brick wall twice. The first time had hurt. The second time had made the teenage champion named Knight Rose stagger around in a daze for almost a minute. It was more then a little embarrassing to know a walking female ice-cream cone was tossing her around like a rag doll. And not just Rose either. All around her were warriors dressed in skimpy mini skirts and color coded blouses.

The only one not wearing such an outfit was Ranma Dreamweaver, who was currently male and wearing his typical red silk shirt and black kung fu pants. He pulled himself out of a collapsed brick wall and dived back into the melee. After landing two lightning fast punches he was forced to dodge to the left. Where Ranma had been standing a weighted chain was impacting the bizarre creature. _Why can't we hurt this one?_ The Flower Knight leader wondered as her head finally cleared.

"Venus planet power make-up," Ranma found himself whispering.

It was taking all his concentration to call forth the power. The transformation wand had proven a bust originally. Or at least it didn't work quite the way other wands did. It took a lot of focus and effort to transform. Which was the main reason he hadn't done so yet. That, and Ranma was worried about what he would be forced to wear. Light surrounded the teen as he lifted into the air. _Where's that music coming from?_ He wondered even as the foreign magic forcibly triggered his transformation into a girl.

It felt like all his, now her clothing pulled off in little flakes. A gemstone appeared on Ranma's forehead. From it she felt metal extending into a tiara. Thankfully the brief period of being unclothed had been obscured by a ribbon of gold energy which Ranma found herself twirling in a spiral. At the same time the tiara formed a white body suit When what felt like light solidified into gloves and heeled straps it was all the neo-girl could do not to groan. Her flowing red hair got pulled back and secured by a bright red bow.

"I am the," _mortified_ she thought, "beautiful soldier of love, Sailor Venus. In the name of the moon I will," _throw up in my mouth,_ "punish you!"

One flying kick later and for the first time in the entire battle the ice cream monster seemed to be on the defense. Knight Magnolia paused in helping the others to their feet in thought. _It's almost like when we fought Beryl. Jane could barely do anything against yoma, while we were nearly useless against her foes. _Not for the first time Magnolia wished she could access the mercury computer while a flower knight. That she still had it hinted that her powers as Sailor Mercury were still there though

"Shellflower, perhaps we should try contacting the other senshi. Didn't Knight Rose once mention that her magic was barely effective against demons?"

The new 'Knight Rose' found herself frowning as the whip ineffectively lashed at their ridiculous foe. While the thorny weapon was scratching the creature, it would take far too long to actually defeat it. Especially with the way this humanoid ice cream cone kept tossing them around. Knight Clover charged back into the battle, her weighted chain swinging in a clumsy arc. It missed the monster, nearly wrapping around the red haired senshi's neck.

At the last moment Venus grabbed the chain and wrapped it around her forearm once. With a mighty pull she drew the Knight of Passion towards the monster they were fighting. Knight Clover was initially startled by the shift in action. Quickly she recovered, turning the headlong flight into a flying kick. With a cry of "Icy!" the monstrous treat hit Knight Clover with a glob of frozen dairy product. This caused her to fly backwards and slip unconscious. A heeled footprint being the biggest indication she had done anything at all.

"Hurry up," Venus shouted as she launched a couple dozen punches within a few seconds. "I can't keep it busy for long!"

_**XxXxX**_

Half a world away six people were meeting. Among them were an unusually tall man with green skin and a well muscled middle aged man who possessed naturally ice blue hair. Others included a woman with lavender skin and moth-like gray wings, and a brown haired man wearing a solid white body suit. The ninja caused the sixth person to raise an eyebrow. This final person was wearing a forest green gown and had a silver circlet resting upon her brow. This woman appeared to be a teenager, yet projected a casual aura of nobility.

Most of the group appeared tired. An observation backed up by the fact the winged woman had on what appeared to be some sort of backless night gown. The man with blue hair also had pajamas on, although he also was wearing a thick wool robe. A tag sticking out indicated the man wearing white had put on his outfit backwards. As the six eyed each other an uneasy silence fell over the room. Seconds became minutes and still the tension grew. The green man's hand twitched towards his hip as if reaching for something not there.

The red haired teenager giggled softly before speaking. "A storm is coming, it starts with the rising sun."

The remaining five exchanged looks which spoke volumes. Even the most tired of them no longer felt lethargic. The woman with lavender skin finally leaned forward. After examining the late night guest she frowned. _By the mother forest, who is she? And is this a warning, or a threat? As the team leader this month, I suppose I should try to ascertain motive._ With a deep sigh she broke the pregnant silence with a pair of questions.

"Who are you, and what do you mean by 'a storm is coming'?"

"I am Jane," the woman in the green dress said simply. "Don't know exactly. I probably could have, but traded the ability to speak with the magic. Oh well."

"Listen lady," the blue haired man snarled angrily, "we need information and you have it. Better start talking before I get... urk!"

His threat got interrupted by a bored wave of her hand. Involuntarily the angry man found himself compelled to climb onto the table. When the angry man started to dance wildly he let loose an ear splitting scream. The fact he kept tripping over the air caused Jane to laugh with joy. Her reaction and subsequent actions caused the others in the room to pale considerably. The sound of an energy weapon powering up caused Jane to turn from her amusement.

"Put that away Cree," she demanded. "What makes you think I'm a threat, when I risked my life a few months alongside you fighting a war?"

_**XxXxX**_

A cry of "regretful rose storm" filled the air as petals swirled around Flower Knight Rose. After a few seconds they surged forth towards the ice cream cone shaped monster. While hundreds of shallow cuts were carved into the creature, it seemed to otherwise ignore the mystic assault. Sailor Venus also found herself caught in the blast. The fae warrior of love stoically refused to even wince as the razor sharp plants tore into skin.

She froze, not in pain but from visions that kept assaulting her. _Poppa said it was a training game, that makes it all right. Doesn't it? So why are the nice people from those buildings yelling and chasing him? Why do they call him a thief? Poppa says the things taken will be returned after all. This is just for training, right? He looks down at the gold and silver bands of metal with shiny rocks inset on them. Is what he's doing wrong? Did poppa lie to him?_

Venus stood there unseeing as an ice cream fist smashed into her face, sending her flying backwards into a wall again. _He knows it's wrong, but he's hungry. Maybe if he had money it would be different. Nabiki never lets him keep more then twenty yen on him at any given moment. Which is why he's currently wearing a dress and posing as a girl. The fact ice cream tastes better as a girl is immaterial. At the moment all he cares about is the fact he can trick venders into giving him free food anytime he wants. That they expect 'favors' for it is known, but he doesn't care what those favors are. They will never be called in._

In the back room Usagi and Ami had detransformed already. As they stared at their transformation items a single thought was going through their minds. _Can I still become a senshi?_ It was something they hadn't tried in a while. Until now there hadn't been a need to. _He stands there looking at his hands. At the time it had seemed like there was no other way. And yet maybe there was and he'd just not bothered to look for It. Could everything have been avoided? He now has blood on his hands, and all because of a stupid map._

Tears flowed freely down Sailor Venus's cheeks. They were not tears of joy or sorrow. No, instead they were tears of deep remorse. Every dishonorable trick, every undeserved insult, every lie and assault all came crashing back. As the seconds ticked by resurfaced memories pointed out every single time her pride and arrogance had hurt another. And it had been often. All the times Ranma had stolen, either items or family techniques. The worst was reliving the first time she'd killed.

Everyone claimed it had been justified. But Venus knew that wasn't the case. Her own pride had been the real reason. The battle had not been about protection originally. It had been about protecting a possible cure for her curse. It had been an unnecessary fight and could probably have been avoided without repercussions. After all, what can be turned on can be turned off as well. Saffron had hinted the 'ascension' had happened in the past, yet the cursed springs still existed.

So deep was Venus's mental anguish that she didn't notice the monster anymore. Or the fact that it had managed to get hold of a fire ax. She was still unseeing as the ax descended towards Venus's face. The remaining flower knights stared in mute horror as an ally was facing her death. Everything seemed to shift into slow motion. The blade began it's lethal path. Sailor Venus stood there unseeing as tears flowed freely. Knights Rose and Clover started running across the room, knowing they would be too late.

"Moon tiara ACTION!"

The phrase echoed through the ruined store as a discus of light traversed the distance. It impacted the yoma's arm and severed it cleanly. The fire ax clattered to the ground even as the severed arm turned into dust. Unfortunately the monster reformed the missing arm within seconds. The senshi of Mercury had held back from fighting. Instead she was scanning the ice cream yoma with a hand held device. While the others distracted it Mercury did what she does best, find it's weakness.

"Got it," The senshi of ice shouted. "If it's melted and frozen at the same time the regeneration will be negated, allowing Sailor Moon to finish it off."

"Great idea," Knight Rose deadpanned as she lashed out with her thorny whip. "Where we getting the fire? Not like I have any incendiary pellets on me."

Mercury checked her computer again and blinked. "How about twenty feet strait down? I'm picking up large readings of liquid nitrogen and magnesium There should be a way down..." Mercury was interrupted as Sailor Venus was thrown into her. The two of them then crashed through one of the remaining display stands. "Right there."

**To be continued**


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

"_When dealing with probabilities it's best to remember one cardinal rule. The smallest change can make the greatest impact."_

_-Setsuna Meio_

_August 21th, 1995_

It was three in the afternoon, and the Cat Cafe was closed. Five teenage girls were sitting around one of the tables nursing cups of tea. One of them, a cute redhead wearing a red silk shirt and black pants was holding an ice pack to her side. Not half an hour ago they had finished a life and death battle against a demonic monster shaped like a female ice cream cone. None had escaped the conflict without at least minor injuries, although Ranma Dreamweaver had suffered the worst.

In part this was because many of her battle wounds had been acquired before transforming. Evidently the enhanced healing only worked on damage incurred while transformed, not pre-existing damage. Which was a very good thing to know. Another good thing to know was that unlike the others, her speed and strength were not enhanced by the senshi transformation. Rather they were reduced from what the fae girl thought of as normal.

Of far greater concern was something still bothering her. Ever since 'Knight Rose' accidentally struck her with that magical attack Ranma had been forced to relive all her worst transgressions periodically. It was starting to wear off. And yet she still couldn't help but dwell upon them. Dreamweaver's new allies were sulking for the most part. For some being tossed around like rag dolls had been a blow to the ego. For others it had been a rude awakening. And for one blond teen with twin pigtails it had been cause for much concern.

"That was a yoma," Usagi said finally. "I think."

"It was," a teenager with short dark blue hair said. "But stronger then any I've seen. Even Beryl's elites weren't that tough. It's almost like it was absorbing everything thrown at it."

The comment caused the teenager known as Sarah Chill to scowl. She thought back to lessons in the United States under her former instructor. Alex Rivers was a strict man, but a fair one. The mercenary also had proved remarkably knowledgeable about things which few would believe. Frequently the knowledge had been gained first hand. While magic had not been one of his areas of expertise, dealing with demons and daemons had been one of the things studied.

"This attack makes no sense," Sarah said at last.

A collective "Huh" arose from her declaration.

"What was the objective? What was the purpose of that daemon killing randomly? It wasn't gathering anything. The ice cream shop it appeared in has no strategic value. So why the assault? We're missing something."

_Gates of Eternity_

Her name was Makoto, and she was bored. Not just bored, but extremely bored. The upcoming 'forest kingdom' didn't need any help to establish. There were no crisis coming anytime soon she would need to help with. Which meant baring someone mucking with time there was nothing to do for the next thousand years or so. Oh sure, there was that girl from the future mucking things up. But Makoto had it on good authority she needed to be doing whatever she was doing.

Being the new guardian of time was so far proving to be extremely dull. It was for this reason alone that the senshi of Jupiter was looking up who the current chaos nexus was. When the gate showed her a pig tailed girl a broad smile formed. Exactly who the girl was didn't exactly matter. Nor did she notice that several senshi were sitting with the red haired girl. _From what Setsuna tells me, chaos nexi tend to be rather strong and incredibly skilled. Now, what can I do for some fun?_

_Tokyo-Nerima ward_

Ranma Dreamweaver, formerly Saotome, was not happy. Nor was she angry. If that had been the case there would be no tears flowing freely. It wasn't as bad as when first struck by those rose petels. She was able to move and see the outside world at least. Things were getting better at least. The world didn't seem as bleak as it had not an hour ago. In the wake of being mystically forced to see all the wrongs she'd committed Ranma found herself a changed person.

This change wasn't immediately obvious, other then the fact she was actually crying. She still was the same person. But now Ranma was aware of how much one's words and actions could hurt another. That had been one lesson her father had steadfastly refused to teach. Perhaps it was one that the old panda hadn't learned yet himself.

The young fae had long believed that insults and fighting was how one showed friendship and affection. This wasn't too surprising. After all, her only role model growing up had been an overweight and dishonorable man who cared more about filling his stomach then his son. Having honor and duty preached to you by someone who lacks a sense of either might be hypocritical to most people. To Ranma it had always been just how things were.

She'd always been taught that it was a martial artists duty to protect and defend. While her father seemed to ignore this duty unless there was a reward involved, Ranma herself did believe in this code to an extent. Enough so that there had been no doubts about joining a losing battle against impossible odds. The belief was strong enough that when offered a way to protect humanity as a whole, it hadn't been a question of 'should I' but of 'can I do so without a free power-up'.

Now however Ranma realized something profound. She realized that many of the problems and dangers she'd defended others from had been directly caused by her own actions. This was a sobering thought. How many lives had been placed in jeopardy or ruined due to pride? _Too many,_ the depressed martial artist thought to herself. _Far too many. Somethin has ta change. I gotta change. I ain't gonna hurt no one again. Never again._

Riana came bursting through the door at that moment. Her forest green dress billowed as the child ran. Her pink hair was once more secured in twin pony tails, a similar style to Usagi's. _Could she be mine?_ Ranma thought glumly. _Riana says she never met 'mommy'. Says she's seen paintings of her though. An I guess I look like her._ Further thought got interrupted as a living bundle of energy impacted the new senshi of Venus.

"Mommy!"

"Oof, hey half-pint." Ranma grunted from her new position on the floor.

_August 25th, 1995_

A teenage boy sat in the local ice cream emporium. He was currently banging his head into the table. Across from him sat a small child with vibrant pink hair. The child was dressed like a shrine maiden, although clearly didn't like the cloths. Which begged the question of why she dressed like that. As for why the boy was smashing his head into the table, well that was directly related to the child. He'd just witnessed a child eat her weight in ice cream.

"Now I know how others feel," Ranma muttered to himself.

The rhythmic thumping was interrupted by a scream. Ranma raised his head and looked out the window. What he saw was an impossibility. Striding through the street was a misshapen thing. It looked like Tatawaki Kuno, yet was clearly female. One of it's hands was a sword made of some sort of light devouring energy. As it walked it was slashing it's weapon through people. While no one was actually being cut in half, Ranma saw each person collapse to the ground.

"And I thought it couldn't get worse. Go hide half-pint."

Ranma pulled out a rather girly looking compact mirror as she raced outside.

_Gates of Eternity_

Two figures stood before the arched doorway. One of them looked to be in her early twenties. She had forest green hair that curled naturally around her face. The woman's companion had brown hair done up in a pony tail. Both stared in horror at the gate. Something had just gone horribly wrong. The senshi of Jupiter was not suppose to be needed yet. Everything had been on track and going smoothly. And yet the end goal had just vanished from the timeline.

"What did you do?" The green haired half-dryad demanded.

Makoto Kino blanched. "I... don't know. It was only suppose to be minor. Just some amusement."

"What. Did. You. Do?" Setsuna asked once more.

_To Be Continued_

**OMAKE!**

The battle had been raging for two hours. In it's wake half the district had been laid to waste. Now the final two combatants were starting to tire. Ranma Saotome however refused to give up. Although on his last legs, he knew it was now or never. Today the ancient pervert would finally face judgment. Happosai stood across the street, glaring at the pig tailed teen. Both were panting, each was aware they only had a few good attacks left. Soon the end would be decided.

"Aaand CUT!" A voice called out as the two martial artists flew towards each other feet first.

Ranma sighed in relieve, just before starting to swing back and forth in the air. "Hey, can someone please let me down? The wire harness is starting to hurt."

A white and pink feline dug it's self out of some rubble and spoke. "At least you're still human. "Why'd the special effects department have to hire a wizard instead of using animal trainers and computer imaging?"

"Oh yeah? Ranma retorted. "At least you stay the same gender. I hate being turned into a boy. And why the hell did they have to cast semi-permanent transformations? I'm going to be typecast for life because of this stupid show."

The director approached as the two martial artists were lowered to the ground. "Sorry Ranko, it wasn't my call. The studio execs insisted things had to be 'real'. Too bad the hedge wizards they found only know how to curse someone."


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

"_If there's one problem with using the time gate, it's that I can only see one future at a time for any given timeline. Because time is an unbroken stream, there's no way to really know what the results of an action not foreordained will be. Over the centuries I've gained more skill at manipulations. Still I am limited in what I can see. It's only after a change has been made that the results are visible."_

_-Makoto Kino_

_August 25th, 1995_

"What did you do," Setsuna demanded for a third time.

The response was an incoherent jumble. The words 'mirror' and 'baby' could be made out. The only mirror that Setsuna knew about that might cause this much trouble was a class three chrono artifact. But how would it and a baby have caused this much of a disruption? Unfortunately the former guardian of time wasn't fully aware of 'recent' events. She'd been out of the loop since first handing over the time key. Answers seemed to be forthcoming though.

From the gate emerged an unknown man. He appeared to be in his late thirties or early fourties. His hair was slightly gray on the sides. The man was wearing a tattered and dirty white body suit with an E emblazoned on the chest. He also appeared badly hurt, as if he'd just been fighting for his life against an army of monsters. When he realized he was safe the man sighed in relief. Moments later he collapsed. Before the eyes of Makoto and Setsuna the man's many gaping wounds started to close.

"Made it," the man gasped. "You... have to... stop... her..."

"Stop who?" Makoto asked in a small voice. She was still panicking after all from the fallout of her attempt to alleviate boredom.

"Ice queen... mirror... she's too strong," he managed to get out.

Minute by minute the man seemed to be strengthening. Yet he was obviously exhausted. One had to wonder what horrors he'd experienced. How long he'd been fighting to look like death warmed over. Who he was also could be wondered. At least, they would have wondered if Setsuna hadn't whispered a name in shock. That name was 'Mystery', or that's what Makoto thought she heard at least. _Who names their child 'mystery' anyway? _The senshi of Jupiter thought to herself.

"Yes I know him," the half-dryad commented after seeing the stare. "He's responsible for the atomic bomb. His punishment as he told me is to 'live until he atones'. The man's been a pain in the ass since the fifties. Try watching timeline four-five-four-six-five- one-six and you'll see what I mean."

_Tokyo_

When the call came they were all in different locations. Some had been working as waitresses. Others had been studying for a test. At least one had been about to take a nap. The one common feature was each person contacted was a member of a rather small group. They were the magical girl defenders of Tokyo. All flower knights in the service of the Faerie queen. Two were also the sailor suited pretty soldiers of love and justice, the sailor senshi.

So when an unfamiliar voice was heard over the communicator the non-senshi were confused. _"This is Sailor Jupiter. I'm going to be busy with something big, but a friend will be coming to help."_

The others finally arrived only to find Sailor Venus frantically dodging a black energy sword while trying to evacuate innocents from the area. Next to a wall was laying a child with pink hair and the cloths of a shrine maiden. This child appeared to be hurt. And cracks in the wall indicated why. As did the thin trail of blood coming from the back of the child's head. Sailor Moon immediately started trying to heal the child.

Sailor Mercury and the the two flower knights started attacking the monster. When a woman with long green hair appeared it was uncertain if this was an ally or enemy. The worman's garments were similar to the senshi. There was a white body suit, gloves, mini-skirt, and bows. This woman however had black boots. Her elbow length gloves were solid white, except for the black strip at the elbows. Her collar was black, as were the skirt and boots. The bow on her front was a dark crimson.

The mystery woman's status of friend or foe was decided when she sent an orb of energy at the monster. As they joined the conflict Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury quickly found their training didn't help as much as one would hope. It had focused mostly on how to use their weapons when flower knights. And this was one monster that wasn't willing to stand still and be hit by magic blasts. The new flower knight Rose was still unused to her whip as well.

Knight Carnation wasn't fairing much better. She too was new. And while she was skilled with several weapons, chains were not among them. The purple haired knight of passion found herself jumping backwards to avoid being bisected by the ebony blade. The senshi of love entered the frey with a flying crescent kick. The area filled with a freezing cold fog, obscuring vision and slowing the Kuno like creature.

With every blast of elemental energy the monster seemed to grow stronger. But the champions refused to quit. They couldn't, the fate of untold innocents were on the line. It was Venus who first made the connection. The kendoist creature would block an attack with it's sword, which in turn made it stronger somehow. Physical blows didn't have the same effect however. While they didn't seem to hurt it, Venus could sense a definite weakening of it's energy.

"Stop helping it," Venus yelled at her team mates. "Just punch the 'true blunder' and get it over with!"

_Elsewhere_

In another part of Japan there was a forest. Not too surprising actually. But this forest was the current residence of a fugitive from Faerie. The teenage girl was grinning darkly as she held a silver hand mirror. The last time she'd seen this, the nanban mirror had been shattered. Yet here it was, perfectly intact. It seemed to be an inexhaustible source of raw magic too. A fact which pleased her greatly. Draining the mirror had supplied all the energy she needed to stay a teenager.

The more she drank of the mirror's power, the more control she got over it. At first it only would allow her to visit alternate timelines. But now she could manipulate the raw forces of time it's self. In a bid for revenge against the one she felt was responsible for her suffering, Nabiki had called forth one of the stronger variants of Tatawaki Kuno and merged it with one of her demonic warriors. The result had been a completely loyal soldier custom tailored to slay Ranma Saotome.

If that didn't work there was always that porcine idiot, the monster man named after female undergarments, and even the birdbrain Saffron. And should all that fail, there was always the option to just try again at an earlier point. One where Saotome wasn't as skilled. With the powers of this mirror, Nabiki knew herself to be unstoppable. Which made her question the instructions from that 'ice queen' person that had contacted her.

While before she'd needed the creation of such a magic rich environment, now the world was her oyster. And once vengeance had been served, a campaign of terror and conquest could begin. There was a time such wouldn't have appealed to Nabiki. That was before she'd merged with the last remnants of a demonic entity slain by a blond ditz. Once the evil girl might have had a little hero worship for the senshi. But now all she felt was disgust and loathing.

So when one of them appeared before her holding a key shaped staff, Nabiki scowled. All her soldiers were out on various tasks, not that she had many to begin with. So few had survived Beryl's destruction. Instead of an army of thousands, she had merely a hundred soldiers. But with her mirror it didn't matter. The fledgling villainous pulled out her tool and began to summon a yoma from the past. The creature proved to be the ice cream yoma from four days previous.

"Sorry, but I can't allow that." Jupiter said with a sigh.

Even before the yoma finished materializing it faded away once more. Sailor Jupiter had swung her staff through the space it was forming in, canceling the time distortion. While still learning the abilities the key-staff gave her, Jupiter knew enough to stop a temporal summoning in progress. If she could, the senshi vowed to herself this would remain a battle between two. Not between herself and an unending army. This task was likely to be hard enough as it was.

The first thought had been to prevent all this at it's source. To do so Jupiter had tried to remove the intact nanban mirror from the Tendo dojo before this girl's servants could acquire it. Fifty two attempts to do that had proven the futility of such actions. And now Jupiter knew intimately how much a paradox headache hurt. So the current plan was to destroy or acquire the mirror before it's use could be fully mastered. And so the battle was joined.

_To Be Concluded_

**Author Notes:**

Sorry, getting writers block right now for this right now. Eventually there will be one final chapter to wrap things up.


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER: **I still don't own Ranma ½, Sailor Moon, Oh! My Goddess, or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story, the concept of the Flower Knights (but not the individual characters who become one), and story elements unique to this tale.

**That Old Time Renewal**

_by Faerie Knight _

"_In all the multiverse, there is only one thing that's infinite. And that is how many realities there are. Anything else is finite. It has a beginning, and an end. Even power sources are finite. Some sources just have a larger supply then others."_

_-Source Unknown_

_August 25th, 1995_

Time is a funny thing. It's passage is steady and dependable. It always flows at the same rate, never faster nor slower. And yet it can speed past before you notice. Time can also crawl by agonizingly slowly. When in a crisis situation it can even selectively speed up or slow down on a case by case basis. Conventional wisdom says this is all a trick of perception. Conventional wisdom also says the past can't be changed. Conventional wisdom however can be very very wrong on occasion.

Which was why Sailor Jupiter was fighting a power mad teenage girl, again. This was the seven hundred and eighty first time they had fought in a row. Each time Jupiter was about to win the villainous teen would jump backwards in time. When that happened she would do something to ensure victory. Jupiter in turn would return to the time gates to determine what had changed, and try again. It seemed to be a never ending cycle.

It could end, but that to Jupiter wasn't an option. Giving up would have dire consequences after all. There was one good thing though. As long as this battle continued, the half-demon couldn't work against the senshi. There was no way to win. But there was equally no way the guardian of time would concede defeat. Not with the stakes this high. But there had to be a way There just had to be. How else could someone have come from the future?

_SHIT!_ Jupiter thought as she saw a sixteen wheeler about to hit her. An emergency jump back to the time gates saved her life, again. Even so, the truck had managed to impact. After coming to a stop a good twenty feet away from her entrance point, Jupiter laid on the ground and groaned. Once more she would have to let the senshi magic repair her body before trying again. _Where did that truck come from anyway? It wasn't there last time!_

Her friend and mentor wasn't back yet. That meant the crisis with Ranma hadn't ended yet. _I wonder how things are going?_

_**XxXxX**_

The streets of Tokyo looked like a warzone. A fact which wasn't too surprising considering what was happening. The senshi were doing battle against a monster yet again. That usually left a fair bit of destruction in it's wake. That a couple of the Flower Knights were fighting by their side was all that kept the property damage levels down. Of course, this just meant that seventy-five buildings and the streets had been trashed so far instead of a hundred.

The problem wasn't that the senshi were incapable of fighting in hand to hand. They did have training in that regard. The problem was that only Sailor Venus was skilled enough in melee combat to face the current foe. The two flower knights also were skilled unarmed combatants. But they too were hard pressed by the creature that once was Tatawaki Kuno. Since energy attacks had proven ineffective time and again, hand to hand was the only real option.

Sailor Moon groaned as she pulled herself out of a collapsed wall. Her determination had been slowly eroding for a while. Even the magic of her transformation was having trouble keeping up with the mounting injuries. Her fuku was torn in several places, and the gloves had long since fallen apart. The others were no better off. Venus was the only one who had mostly avoided getting hurt. And she too was covered in nicks and shallow cuts.

Sailor Mercury moved in and swung a steel bar at the Kuno yoma responded with a cry of "Strike! Strike! Strike!" It was accompanied by a series of high speed thrusts of the energy blade. With the scant warning given the cerulean haired warrior dove to the side seconds before being struck. Mercury's makeshift staff impacted just behind the left knee, but visibly did little damage The black and white clad senshi whispered something, and an orb of energy shot forth at the former Kuno.

"Would ya stop feeding it?" Venus snapped at the black and white clad senshi. "All your doing is making it stronger!"

_Bokken for brains was never this good before,_ Venus thought to herself as she ducked under a slash. _And if miss 'dead scream' doesn't stop helping it, we might just lose._ It struck Venus as odd that this foe was all but immune to energy attacks. Physical assaults seemed most effective. But even that had no visible affect. And when the former Kuno managed to land a blow it actually hurt, a lot. Not quite as much as fighting a yoma as a flower knight did. Her magic wasn't being suppressed. And the fuku did offer some protection.

However the blows were able to partly bypass the senshi protective magics. This was evident in the others too. And then there was the skill of this foe. Kuno had never before shown this much raw combat ability. The creature almost seemed to be Venus's equal in fighting. A fact which was frightening. It meant they could actually lose. _At least the kid's not here,_ she thought grimly. While it wasn't the first time Venus had faced someone as powerful or more then herself, it was arguably the first time the person had been equally as skilled as Venus.

As another blow managed to slip past her defense Venus found herself flying backwards into the other senshi. She saw the green haired one was about to launch another energy sphere, and put a stop to that action rather quickly. She did so with a stiff slap to the back of Pluto's head while covering the woman's mouth. Moments later Venus had to propel both of them out of the way of the kuno monster's attack. With a soft hiss the senshi of love slapped Pluto again.

"Are ya a complete baka? Energy attacks _strengthen_ it instead of hurting it. Ya keep healing that thing and we _will_ lose."

A few feet away Sailor Moon was busy healing several downed warriors yet again. And all around the city enchanted statues reached critical mass from absorbing this last bit of magical discharge. Even as a pulse of raw magic surged the Kuno yoma managed to thrust her energy sword into Venus's back. The creature let loose a wordless celebratory cry. With it's guard down, the creature didn't see a chain or thorn covered whip heading it's way. Nor did it see as Sailor Mercury brought a telephone pole down on it's head.

Neither the other two senshi or the two flower knights had realized Mercury was that strong. To be fair, Sailor Mercury had also been unaware of it. The unexpected strength also seemed to vanish moments later. Since the yoma started to slowly crumble into dust the danger had clearly passed. But in the wake of battle the girls found one of their own dying, again. Sailor Moon tried, but found her own magic nearly depleted. It was only pure luck Flower Knight Clover heard the senshi of love's pained whisper.

"need... lake... hurry..."

An exhausted Sailor Moon started to cry. She could see her friend and sensei was dying. And there was nothing she could do about it. With no magic left, there was no hope. _No! I wont lose another friend! _She thought frantically. Her broach glowed with an inner light. As the light bathed the senshi of love something miraculous happened. Venus's heart beat strengthened. The hole in the center of her chest slowly started to close. Those nearby watched as vaporized lungs and bone reformed centimeter by centimeter.

But it was not without cost. Even as Sailor Venus grew stronger Sailor Moon started to sag. Until finally the blond collapsed to the ground. Her skin had taken on a deathly pallor. While she was still breathing, it was extremely shallow. To Sailor Mercury's horror her friend and one of the last two original senshi was dying. And according to the mercury computer there was nothing that could be done. Her friend had used her own vitality to power that last spell.

_**XxXxX**_

"You can't stop me!" Nabiki screamed as Sailor Jupiter once again showed up. "I control time it's self!"

The little girl was a new feature of their battle field. Neither combatant knew quite where she'd come from. A pulse of raw magic chose that moment to wash through the area before continuing onward. In it's wake lights failed and cars stopped working. Another thing that the wave caused to malfunction was the blast of temporal magic Nabiki had launched from the mirror. It was a trick the demonically infused girl had only just figured out how to do.

Such an attack should have ripped the senshi of Jupiter into thousands of pieces, each thrown into a different time period. Barring that it should have caused rapid aging until death. What happened instead was that raw magic impacted the orb of destructive energy and shattered it. When the child kicked Nabiki in the shin the shock was enough to cause the mirror to slip from her hand. The hand held object fell in what seemed like slow motion. When it struck the ground there was the distinctive sound of breaking glass.

The former mercenary's nails extended into viscous looking claws. Claws which she tried to disembowel the little girl with. A silver staff in the shape of a key blocked her though. It quickly became apparent to both who was more skilled in hand to hand combat. While no where near the level of one Ranma Saotome, Sailor Jupiter still was far better then Nabiki. In part it was because the teenage demi-demon hadn't practiced at all since she was about six.

After several exchanges Nabiki found herself losing badly. With one arm hanging limply and several ribs causing a great deal of pain she fled. Upon reaching some deep shadows Nabiki vanished to another location. Once at her hideout the budding villainess found piles of dust where her top soldiers should have been. With a snarl she tried to revive them with her power over time. Only to find she no longer had that ability. What was more, she only knew of one way to create more minions.

"Damn it!" Nabiki shouted to the wilds. "This isn't the last they heard of me! They'll rue the day they crossed the Ice Queen!"

_**XxXxX**_

_Post Merger, dates unknown_

All over the world it was the same. In the wake of what would become known as the Pulse anything that was powered by electricity had stopped working. At the same time forests appeared in many places where none had existed previously. In time new species would be discovered, many that defied scientific explanation. In time things would settle down. Eventually order would be established and stable communities would once again develop. But for the moment anarchy was starting to take hold.

There were those who defended the helpless. There were those who tried to maintain control. But even these self appointed champions knew they couldn't be everywhere. Some would found communities where civilization still existed. Others would go down in legend as wandering heroes. And more then a few would found religions which would still exist thousands of years later. But in all the world there were only a handful of people who knew what had really happened that day.

Some places became almost holy sites. One become known as the Shrine of Dreams. The shrine was always tended by the same family of priests. Why they tended the shrine was never known. Some said they were bound to the spirit which resided in the shrine's small lake. Others said they tended the shrine to warn people away. The truth had been lost long ago. All that was known is that sometimes people would enter the lake. And if the spirit accepted the person, they never left it.

The priests never stopped anyone wanting to enter the lake. But for those the spirit rejected, they would be there offering what support they could. The spirit didn't show it's self very often. Some tales said it was male, others female. No one was quite sure. All anyone knew was that the faerie spirit known as "Ranma of the Lake' would protect the shrine's caretakers if they ever were threatened. So when a traveling priestess with pink hair approached the shrine the current caretaker was cautious.

Every few years some priest or anther came to try removing the lake's guardian. While it never worked, some ended up needing an undertaker after threatening the family. This young woman however did not start any banishing rituals. Instead she knelt beside the lake respectfully. After praying for several minutes the woman smiled sadly. The caretaker could tell she'd seen much sorrow in her life. And that broke his heart for some reason.

"I'm home Mom," the priestess said in a soft voice. "I know you still feel guilty. But it's time to fight again. After all these centuries, the ice queen is back. Please Mom, I can't do this alone. Will you help me find the others?"

**The End**

_and_

_The Beginning?_

**Author Notes:**

I hope people have enjoyed this. It's a lot more action oriented then Old Time Magic was. And it likely isn't the end of the story either. As people who read the first story in this series might know, it deals heavily with karma. And one theme is that even heroes can die. Every action has a reaction. Every boon has a price. And sometimes the price is rather high.

I'm not sure when or if I'll write the third 'book' in this story. But if I do, it will follow Riana's quest to gather the current generation of senshi and stop Nabiki once and for all. In this story I didn't do much with Riana Tendo. In part that's because I wasn't quite sure what to do with her. I just knew her role would be important somehow. Maybe not for the current story, but for the overall storyline. That, and I was getting too many characters to keep track of.


End file.
